Cy-Fair School Bus Collision Illustrates Bus Crash Dangers | DENENA | POINTS

Cy-Fair School Bus Collision Illustrates Bus Crash Dangers

On Wednesday afternoon at Clay Road and Greenhouse, 17 students from Cy-Fair I.S.D. barely avoided disaster when an SUV slammed into their school bus. The schoolchildren quickly evacuated the school bus after the wreck and were told to stay back by firefighters who thought the bus might catch fire or explode.

At least four students received transport to the hospital with injuries after the crash. The driver of the SUV suffered minor injuries. Authorities were still trying to determine which driver was at fault for the accident.

Our Houston school bus crash attorneys point out that this school bus collision, with its safe evacuation of students and lack of a post-crash fire, stands in marked contrast to the recent bus collision with a FedEx truck in California that tragically killed 10 victims and injured more than two dozen others.

Buses carry large amounts of fuel compared to cars and light trucks. And bus fuel tanks have shown an alarming tendency in numerous wrecks over the years to erupt in flames after a crash. Buses also have other drawbacks that create additional risks in serious accidents. They are difficult to evacuate. Windows are hard o open, and doors can be warped so that they won’t open. Few buses are equipped with seatbelts. And even on buses that have them, riders don’t always wear them. So when a crash occurs, riders are hurled around the bus and become seriously injured or disoriented, making it difficult for them to evacuate the bus.

Recognizing the particular dangers of bus crashes, the NHTSA has been working on recommendations for several years now that are designed to facilitate the safe and fast evacuation of buses and to provide extra crash impact protections for passengers. But the Houston school bus crash attorneys at Denena Points, PC emphasize that the NHTSA is also the agency in charge of ensuring car and light truck safety. The agency has its hands full just trying to conduct necessary investigations regarding passenger vehicle defects and issue appropriate recalls. And the NHTSA has been called on the carpet recently for not even doing an adequate job in that regard. So bus safety keeps getting pushed to the back burner.

Click the link to learn about another serious school transport crash that illustrates the dangers faced by riders.